The enslaved wet nurse as nanny: the transition from free to slave labor in childcare in Barcelona after the Black Death (1348)

ABSTRACT

After the Black Death (1348–1400), Barcelona elites moved from hiring free wet nurses to purchasing enslaved women. This was not simply because the supply of slaves increased making enslaved wet nurses affordable. The gold standard before the plague was a married wet nurse of good reputation who lived in. Such women had families; as the labor market turned in their favor, they negotiated terms that benefited them, for example, bringing their child with them. Employers wanted wet nurses without children who could not leave their positions over those with what they deemed good characters. The slave’s inability to negotiate terms for herself or her child or to cut her period of service short made her more desirable.     

Does Marriage Discourage Female Labor Force Participation? Empirical Evidence from Thailand

Abstract

In labor supply theory, marriage can be one of the obstacles making it less likely for a woman to participate in the labor market. However, the relationship between marriage and a female’s working outside the home can vary according to a country’s stage of economic development. This paper therefore aims to investigate the impact of marital status on labor force participation of women in developing countries by using Thailand as a case study. Using sex ratios at the provincial level as an instrumental variable for marital status gives different results from previous empirical research focusing on developed countries. Married women in a developing country like Thailand are more likely to participate in the labor market and work more hours than are unmarried women, especially those who are younger, less educated, not household heads, and with fewer family members to care for. Therefore, policy recommendations for developing countries should aim to support those young and less educated married (and poor) female workers by including extended maternity leave, flexibility of working hours, and establishment of childcare facilities in the workplace, including child allowances for married women who have children.     

Women in India: The Context and Impact of HIV/AIDS

ABSTRACT

The response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic on the Indian subcontinent has been hampered by several factors, including societal stigma, lack of educational resources, lack of economic opportunities, and the competing priorities for a nation just growing and developing an infrastructure for education, industry, and health. In particular, Indian women are silent victims in this epidemic because they do not readily have a respected voice in decision making and priority setting for the government. The epidemic is increasingly affecting and infecting Indian women (e.g., female commercial sex workers, married women, and pregnant women). The status of Indian women has placed them at extreme disadvantage because India is a country with socially progressive laws but has been slow to change its social norms. The reported HIV prevalence is low although many researchers agree a large amount of underreporting occurs. For India to address this emerging epidemic among women appropriately, it should focus on three intervention areas: (1) short-term solutions such as treatment options for those already infected with HIV to prevent further infection to sexual partners and children; (2) intermediate solutions such as education for those who are uninfected but engaging in behaviors that may put them at risk, such as injection drug use, engaging in commercial sex work, engaging in extramarital sexual relations, and having sexual partners who are not monogamous; and 3) long-term solutions such as addressing the root causes of inequality (e.g., disparities in education and employment and unwillingness to change social norms).     

The Power of Peer Support: The Development of the Empowerment Center

ABSTRACT

This article discusses the events and influences that led to the author’s contribution to the development of a mental health consumer-run organization, The Empowerment Center in Mount Vernon, NY. The author traces some events that influenced him personally and the evolution of the Empowerment Center from an organization that provided advocacy services (to those with mental health problems who were hospitalized) and community-based support services to people in mental health recovery, to an organization focusing on economic empowerment and economic development for the community of those in recovery. The transition of the Empowerment Center into an organization focused on economic empowerment underscores the importance of economic independence for people in recovery and the consumer-run organizations that support them. The Empowerment Center endeavors to demonstrate that mental health consumer-survivors can take control of their economic health as well as their physical and mental health.     

Frequency and Types of Partner Violence Among Mexican American College Women

Objective and Participants: The authors studied the prevalence of partner violence, by type, among Mexican American college women aged 18 to 35 years (N = 149; response rate = 85%). Results: Twelve percent of women who reported a dating partner in the past year were physically or sexually assaulted, 12.1% were stalked, and 9.1% scored as psychologically abused. Among those experiencing partner violence, almost half experienced stalking and 89% reported psychological abuse. Few women (25%) who experienced physical violence believed violence was a problem in their relationship. Conclusions: Partner violence was prevalent in this population, and participants experienced many forms of violence. Because few women experiencing physical violence report that violence is a problem in their relationship, interventions must address perceptions of violence and its impact on women's mental and physical health in college populations.     

Sexism,Erotophobia, and the Illusory “No”

SUMMARY

I examined erotophobic, sex-negative attitudes toward female sexuality as they relate to acquaintance rape. Evidence suggests that sexist assumptions about female eroticism are intrinsically related to sexual violence against women. The argument is made that society's willingness to acknowledge women as sexual victims while simultaneously failing to validate women as sexual agents creates an ideal breeding ground for acquaintance rape. Accordingly, an analysis will be offered: in a culture that denies women freedom to say “yes” to sex without negative stigma, “no” does not always mean “no.” In this article, I will assert mat those who care about stopping sexual aggression in dating relationships have an obligation to work to eradicate sexist assumptions that neuter women's erotic selves.     

Asset-Building Policies and Safety for Women

Abstract

While the importance of equitable income distribution is well-documented in the literature, this author considers the additional role assets might play in assisting women with achieving long-term economic security, as well as increasing their level of safety. Integrating feminist and exchange theories with asset-building theory provides a more inclusive model for conceptualizing the interrelatedness of economic resources, race/ethnicity, and woman abuse. This model allows us to stretch current ways of thinking about these issues in order to create and evaluate public policies that might play an important role in redressing the economic inequities abused women frequently experience.     

Deciding Not to Adopt: The Role of Normative Family Ideologies in Adoption Consideration

ABSTRACT

Americans view adoption favorably, yet few consider adopting or actually adopt a child. Using qualitative data from the representative National Survey of Fertility Barriers, we explored why women who had considered adoption decided not to pursue it as a pathway to parenthood. Our sample includes responses from 1,747 women who considered adoption at some point. Seven themes emerged: prioritization of biology, economic concerns, family building prerequisites, relationship barriers, barriers to adoption, family barriers, and change of heart. Findings highlight that barriers to adoption are not always the primary reasons women opt out of adoption; normative conceptualizations of “family” are also important.     

Migration as a window to empowerment: Nepalese women's experiences in South Korea

ABSTRACT

Migrant women are often described as victims of the global economy: accounts of human rights abuses and economic exploitation have eclipsed more positive accounts of the impact of migrant work on women's lives. Some migrant women are positioned to make use of new opportunities which they see as empowering, in contrast to earlier experiences in their homes or sending countries. This study, based on qualitative interviews with 13 young Nepalese women working in manufacturing and agricultural sectors with Employment Permits in South Korea, highlights a rather positive window of women's empowerment. It shares the perspectives of young, mostly single women who gain self-confidence through their new ability to take care of their family (some becoming primary breadwinners). The women are also able to plan for their economic futures, and report their voices being heard more in important family decision-making. These material, relational, and perceptual improvements are all important dimensions of empowerment. In these experiences, gender intersects with age and other factors to produce a nuanced view of specific young women's experience of migrant work.     

Jewish and Muslim Married Women Don't Work

ABSTRACT

This article sets out to locate the place and meaning of work within the lives of migrant wives by examining the experiences of two migrant waves into Britain: Eastern European Jews from Russia, Russia/Poland, and Romania at the end of the nineteenth and early years of the twentieth centuries; and Muslim Bangladeshis during the latter decades of the twentieth and dawn of the twenty-first centuries. Using a cultural and religious framework, it explores the reality of life for women whose traditional role has been perceived solely as that of homemaker. However, research has shown that in the case of both groups, economic activities were carried out within and beyond the home. Going behind the “veil,” it reveals the various means employed by women who sought to sustain the household at times of hardship, even if this involved contravening the wishes of spouses and in-laws. Finally, the article highlights the recent changes that have taken place in the economic lives of Bangladeshi and Pakistani women who are seeking to empower themselves by moving into the economic mainstream.     

Implications of no recent sexual activity,casual sex,or exclusive sex for college women's sexual well-being depend on sexual attitudes

Objective: We examine how sexual activity relates to sexual well-being within the context of sexual attitudes, sexual agency, and sexual desire. Participants/Methods: We surveyed 471 college women in 2012–2014 who had ever had sex. Results: Sexual agency and sexual desire consistently predicted well-being, regardless of recent sexual activity. There was a significant interaction between recent sexual activity (none, casual, or exclusive relationship) and sexual attitudes. Exclusive sex was associated with higher than average sexual well-being, especially for women with permissive attitudes. Women who had casual sex and held permissive to average attitudes had the next highest levels of well-being, but those with non-permissive attitudes fell substantially below the overall mean. Women who had no recent sex were consistently below the mean, especially for women with more permissive attitudes. Conclusions: A disconnect between sexual attitudes and recent sexual activity may lower women's sexual well-being.     

The Role of Shame in Women's Recovery from Alcoholism

Abstract

This study compares the recovery experience of female members of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) who reported a history of childhood sexual abuse (68%) with those who did not report experiencing childhood sexual abuse. A sample of 53 women was obtained from AA. A significant relationship was found between shame and two measures of difficulties in recovery-problems in social adjustment and relapse. Though the hypothesis that experiences of child sexual abuse predicted difficulty in recovery was not supported, these data suggest that shame may be an important variable in both the etiology and treatment of alcoholism in women.     

Marriage and Women's Earnings from Work

Abstract

Marital status and earnings from work for women are studied using the National Longitudinal Surveys (NLS), Young Women's Cohort. The study focuses on how being continuously married affects the earnings of women from young adulthood through their pre-retirement years. Earnings from work are measured by average annual wages between 1968 and 1999. Bivariate findings suggest that marriage and family are associated with lessening the wage-earning potential of women over the life course but multivariate analysis shows no effect beyond that of other measures accounted for in the study. Education and number of hours worked are positively related to earnings outcomes and the number of dependents has a negative effect. Policy makers who are calling for an increase in marriage-promoting activities for TANF recipients are using marriage as a primary solution for eliminating poverty and thereby ignoring real ways to help women earn more for themselves and their families. The use of TANF funds for encouraging marriage in general is also of questionable economic advantage to non-welfare women.     

Great Expectations: Preventive Health Concepts in Childbearing and Parenting for College Students

Abstract

The authors tested the long-term effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioral group intervention in reducing depressive symptoms, decreasing negative thinking, and enhancing self-esteem in 92 college women aged 18 to 24 years who ere at risk for clinical depression. The women were randomly assigned to either an experimental or a no-treatment control group. The experimental group participated in a 6-week cognitive-behavioral intervention that targeted identification and reduction of negative thinking, using such techniques as thought stopping and affirmations. Data on depressive symptoms, self-esteem, and negative thinking were collected before the intervention and at intervals of 1, 6, and 18 months postintervention. The women in the intervention group experienced a greater decrease in depressive symptoms and negative thinking and a greater increase in self-esteem than those in the control group. The beneficial effects continued over an 18-month follow-up period. These findings support the importance of thought stopping and affirmations as prevention interventions with at-risk college women.     

Impediments to Academic Performance of Bisexual College Students

Abstract

Objective: To investigate health-related impediments to academic success for bisexual college students. Participants: Respondents to the Fall 2011 American College Health Association–National College Health Assessment II (ACHA-NCHA II) survey who self-identified as bisexual, heterosexual, gay, or lesbian. Methods: Secondary analyses of the ACHA-NCHA II data were conducted to compare the experiences of bisexual students with both each other (bisexual men and bisexual women) and those of their nonbisexual counterparts (heterosexual and gay/lesbian students). Results: Bisexual college students are a large and distinct sexual minority group. On all measures with the exception of discrimination, bisexual college students reported the strongest threats to academic success of all sexual orientations. Conclusions: Given the unique impediments for bisexual students, college health professionals should consider specifically addressing needs for bisexual students, bisexual women in particular.     

A Qualitative Analysis of College Women's Leaving Processes in Abusive Relationships

Abstract

Objective: This study assessed the process of leaving an abusive dating relationship utilizing a qualitative design. Methods: Participants included 123 college women in abusive dating relationships who participated at the beginning and end of a 10-week academic quarter. Results: Qualitative content analyses were used to analyze the transcribed responses to an open-ended question about women's leaving processes over the interim period. A variety of categories and themes emerged for women in different stages of the leaving process, consistent with the Transtheoretical Model of Change and Investment Model. Data also underscored women's lack of acknowledgment, minimization, and normalization of abuse. Conclusions: These data demonstrate the importance of dating violence intervention and prevention programming on college campuses and offer information that may be useful to college health providers who assist women in abusive dating relationships.     

Heart Disease Risk Perception in College Men and Women

Abstract

The authors sought to assess the perception of risks for coronary heart disease (CHD) in college men and women. They surveyed 470 undergraduates from 2 major 4-year institutions who completed a questionnaire that measured perceived risks for heart disease. Sixty-eight percent of the respondents rated their risks as lower or much lower than those of their peers, indicating a clear optimistic bias. The research also revealed that the students who exercised regularly rated their risk of coronary disease lower than those who did not do so. In addition, women perceived a number of risk markers to be more potent or causative factors than men did. A significant number of participants did not comprehend commonly understood causal relationships associated with heart disease risk. The findings in this preliminary investigation suggest that college men and women do not accurately perceive their risks for developing heart disease.     

Depressive Distress and Prevalence of Common Problems Among Homosexually Active African American Women in the United States

SUMMARY

We report findings from a national survey of 603 homosexually experienced African American women who self-identified as lesbian, gay, or bisexual. Levels of psychological distress greatly exceeded population norms for African American women. The most frequent problems participants reported were romantic relationship and financial difficulties. Problems with using drugs or alcohol to self-medicate psychological distress were the most chronic stressors. Although 31% of women indicated they received emotional support from a counselor or other professional in the prior month, the least likely to receive support were those reporting chronic financial, housing, anger, or substance use problems. These findings underscore the vulnerability of African American women, who navigate the triple stigma of having a minority ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender.     

Social Security Reform

Abstract

Despite recent economic gains for women, a substantial gender gap in financial security during old age remains, making women more dependent than men upon Social Security. Social Security plays an important role in providing for women's economic security. The implications for women of several proposed changes in Social Security policy, including the call for the partial privatization of Social Security via the introduction of individual accounts, are analyzed. Many of the proposals would have the effect of asking women, particularly low-income women, to shoulder a disproportionate share of the risks and burdens associated with the changes.     

Behavior Change and the Freshman 15: Tracking Physical Activity and Dietary Patterns in 1st-Year University Women

Objective and Participants: The authors assessed the stability of diet and physical activity and their relationship to weight changes in first-year university women. Methods: They collected anthropometric and body composition data from 101 resident women at the beginning of their first year of college and again at 12 months. The authors obtained physical activity and dietary logs 4 times throughout the year. Results: Caloric intake decreased over 12 months in all participants (p = .01). There was little change in physical activity in participants who lost weight (p = .73, d = .18). Those who gained weight experienced a trend toward decreased physical activity (p = .13, d = .38). A significant Time X Group interaction on physical activity (p = .04) suggests that physical activity patterns differed substantially between individuals who gained weight and those who lost weight. Conclusions: Reduction in physical activity appears to be the defining characteristic in freshman weight gain.